


Another Dawn

by Kate_The_Linguist_55



Category: Sleepless Domain (Webcomic)
Genre: AU, Gen, Isekai, science-fiction
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:41:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28791876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kate_The_Linguist_55/pseuds/Kate_The_Linguist_55
Summary: A girl falls in battle and gets up in an alien world.
Kudos: 7





	Another Dawn

_Claws tearing; unravelling; a flash of anger; a parting shot; darkness; nothing._

_That smug, leering face burnt into my mind as it dissolves._

_Unknown aeons in the dark, across the unmeasurable void._

***

Motes of blue-grey dust dance in the breeze. A pillar, its builders long forgotten, stands tall, silhouetted by moonlight from the crimson sky. I lie in the dust, and awake.

To my surprise, I am whole.

I get up, feeling a little woozy and disoriented, dust myself down, and take stock of my surroundings. One thing’s for sure: I’m not in the City anymore. Everything here is a strange colour: like when the inner barrier is up, but without the sort of glow the barrier has. Instead, it all seems to be dust, clouds, and worn-down stone and concrete. The place seems lifeless, but there’s air I can breathe.

I’m standing in the middle of a circular space, surrounded by pillars. Eight in all. They’re decorated with some sort of patterns. Or perhaps it’s some kind of writing. I don’t know.

I’m no … was archaeologist the word for someone who used to explore ruins? … So there’s nothing for me here. I set off: I’m not going to last long unless I can find food, water, or other people, after all. It would be a shame to cheat death only to just starve in some dusty old ruin. Or whatever this place is.

Outside the ring of pillars is more blue dust. A flat empty plain extends a fair way in every direction, although I can just about make out what might be buildings in the distance. It’s hard to tell for sure. My vision is still a bit hazy. Or perhaps the air is hazy. Or both.

I head towards the nearest maybe-building.

It turns out they are buildings. Or rather were. More ruins. The walls are built of some sort of blue concrete, or something like that. They look like they might have been people’s houses a long time ago. But now they’re just old walls and dust.

The doors seem to be made of metal. They won’t open when I push, but one’s rusted enough I can look inside the shell of a house behind. There’s nothing useful here: any furniture has long since rotted, so all that’s left is dust and broken machines I don’t understand. That one looks kind of like a television though. I head back out.

One thing’s for sure: I’m not going to find anything to eat or drink here. There’s not even a single plant growing as far as I can see. I thought you needed plants for air? Well, science was never my strong point.

I keep walking. I wonder: have I ended up in the far future? Did we fail to protect the City in the end? The style of what’s left of the houses doesn’t look at all familiar, though. So where am I?

It’s at this point I realise how cold I’m getting. I need to find shelter, but the houses I can get into look like they might collapse on me any second. And that would be no good. At least there are no monsters, I suppose.

Dust stirs, and my hair starts to blow in my face. The wind’s picking up. Still no sign of anywhere safe to rest. This is starting to get concerning.

But wait a minute.

Is that a _person_ there in the distance?

**Author's Note:**

> This is, in effect, a prequel to Situation Report.


End file.
